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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22356718">Obsessive, Possesive and Mine</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dracomytoy/pseuds/Dracomytoy'>Dracomytoy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Obsessive Behavior, Possessive Draco Malfoy, Potty words</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 09:08:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,572</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22356718</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dracomytoy/pseuds/Dracomytoy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hermione punches Draco for being the royal git that he is and ends up setting into motion his obsession and her posession.  Losing your temper doesn't always work in your favor, but sometimes it does.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>190</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This story is AU and meant to be light and fluffy at heart. It will will have a little smut, a little angst, and a little humor.....I hope.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione Granger was a lot of things. She was smart, unnervingly strong willed, kind, and loyal. What she wasn't, was patient. It was ridiculously easy to rile her up. Her best friends, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley only had to blow off studying or not pay attention in class to get her ire up. Once she got riled up it was hard for her to rein her temper back in. That's how she found herself in her current predicament. She'd just punched Draco fricken Malfoy in the face! Punched him! She almost couldn't believe what she'd done. One minute she was walking with her friends around the grounds, when they ran into Malfoy and his friends Nott and Zabini. They began insulting the three friends as usual, but today wasn't the best day to get on Hermione's bad side. </p><p>They had just found out that their favorite professor, Remus Lupin  was being kicked out of the school. Somehow word had gotten out that he was a werewolf and parents had been owling Dumbledore incessantly demanding he be fired. Harry was taking it especially hard since he was closer to Professor Lupin than anyone else at school. You see, Harry's parents had died in a horrible potions accident when Harry was just a baby. They had grown up with Remus Lupin and knew all about his lycanthropy and were working diligently to find a cure for their friend. The day they died they had sent Harry off with Remus and his godfather Sirius Black while they worked on a critical phase of their experimental potion. Unfortunately, something had gone wrong and the potion exploded killing Harry's parents instantly.  After their death Remus and Sirius raised Harry.  So naturally when Harry found out about Remus's situation he had become quite depressed. Ron and Hermione had decided to bring him outside for some fresh air and exercise hoping it would help clear his mind. </p><p> </p><p>Of course they didn't expect to run into Malfoy and his cronies. By now the whole school knew about Professor Lupin being fired. Most students were being sympathetic but not the Slytherin trio. They were horrible bullies by nature. They were smug, spoiled, entitled little shits who thoroughly enjoyed bullying everyone around them.  It didn't hurt that Draco's father headed the board of governors at Hogwarts.   It meant that Draco and his friends got away with practically everything.</p><p> As soon as they saw the Gryffindor trio, they struck with a vengeance.   Everyone at Hogwarts knew that Harry and Remus were close.  Obviously this made the Slytherins day and they were being particularly vicious towards Harry.  Just watching Harry sink further and further into himself as Draco ridiculed him, fueled a fury in Hermione that she'd never experienced before.  Before she knew what was happening she had punched Draco Malfoy right in his ferrety little face.  </p><p>She didn't know what had come over her, as angry as she'd been in the past she had never struck anyone before.  As shocked as she was by her actions she could not bring herself to regret it. He deserved every ache and pain that came along with that punch.   She stood in front of him staring him down with righteous indignation. He stared at her for what felt like hours but was only mere seconds.  He he didn't say anything, just kept staring at her with a look on his face that she could not decipher. The longer he stared at her the more angry she got. Finally she could not take it anymore and shouted "How dare you use someone else's pain for your perverse enjoyment! You are a foul loathsome evil little cockroach!"  Harry and Ron stared at her with eyes as big as saucers. </p><p>Zabini recovered first and started advancing towards Hermione.  That shook Harry and drew him out of his stupor. They pulled their wands and jumped in front of Hermione blocking her from his wrath.  There was a lot of shouting and wand waving before  Harry finally cast a stupefy at Zabini.  That distracted them long enough for Harry and Ron to grab Hermione and start hauling her away before they decided to retaliate. The whole time this was going on however, Draco never stopped staring at Hermione.  He hadn't moved or said a word since she punched him.  It was unnerving and Hermione couldn't walk away fast enough.  She could feel his eyes on her back as she and her friends walked across the grounds. Just before they turned the corner she looked back and sure enough he was still staring.  She couldn't help thinking that her actions that day had just set something in motion she wasn't entirely sure she was prepared to handle.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It had been two weeks since the incident, as she and her friends were referring to it, and the Slytherin trio hadn't approached them once. This should have reassured Hermione and it would have except for the fact that Draco Malfoy wouldn't stop staring at her. In the great hall, in potions and Arithmancy. He had even started coming to the library just to stare at her. On more than one occasion he hadn't even bothered to pretend he was reading! At first it had worried her but, after two weeks she was just pissed off. </p><p>She was currently in the library to find some books for a bit of light reading seeing as she was three weeks ahead on her schoolwork. Thankfully she hadn't seen hide nor hair of Malfoy at all today. She was currently looking through some shelves in the back of the library trying to find something interesting she hadn't read before. It was blissfully quiet back in this section of the library as it was rarely used. The books here were older and had that comforting smell of old parchment and ink that Hermione loved. She was in her element and totally relaxed. </p><p>She'd just found a book of a compilation of letters between an alchemist and his apprentice detailing their experimentations with mercury and hemlock to make niffler bait. She started to head out of the stacks to find  a comfortable seat to read in when she slammed into something solid. The impact sent her falling backwards at the same time a pair of hands reached for her stopping her fall. Once she got her footing back she looked up and into a pair of silver grey eyes. Shocked she tried to disentangle herself from his grasp but he tightened his hold. "Malfoy, what are you doing? Let me go!" She demanded.  He laughed but didn't loosen his grip one bit. "Granger, you ran into me, almost knocked me over and fall on your own arse, yet you have the nerve to be cross with me even though I saved you! Don't you think you should be thanking me instead of harping at me like a shrew?" He asked in an amused tone with a smirk firmly lodged on his pointy face. </p><p>Hermione bared her teeth at him and barely managed to keep herself from growling. How dare he smirk at her! "Let me go Malfoy!" She said in a low dangerous voice. Instead of letting her go he started laughing the infuriating git! "So stubborn Granger," he said still laughing "I'll let you go as soon as you say 'thank you for catching me and saving me from a bruised arse Draco' without snark if you don't mind," he said. "You want me to say what? Are you serious? I'm not saying that!" She hissed at him.</p><p>His eyes practically lit up at that statement. "I didn't realize you wanted me to hold you so badly. All you had to do was ask, Hermione," he said, his voice low and guttural. Hermione was stunned. He said her name for crying out loud! He'd never in all 5 years of school called her anything other than Granger. She didn't even know he knew her first name! "What did you call me?" She said in a voice that was barely even a whisper. </p><p>Something changed in his expression that set her heart to racing. He took a step closer to her and tightened his hold on her. "Hermione. I called you Hermione. That is your name after all."  He said. </p><p>He was too close and his voice was too low and he was calling her by her given name. Hermione had no idea what was going on but she'd had enough. She managed to bring her hands up between them. She put them on his chest and gave him a shove. "I don't know what kind of game your playing Malfoy bu…" "Draco, my name is Draco," he said, interrupting her. "If your going to yell at me some more, you should call me Draco." </p><p>That woke her up. Hermione reared back with all her might to disentangle herself from Malfoy's clutches. He had a tighter grip than she thought though and her arms stayed tightly in his grasp.  The momentum she created however,  caused the pair of them to topple over.  When they landed Malfoy was on top of a winded furious Hermione.  "Hermione," he said in a husky voice, "if you wanted me on top of you, all you had to do was ask.  No need for such a dramatic performance." </p><p>Hermione was furious and wanted to tell him what an arse he was but the fall had stolen her breath and her voice.  She started to struggle out of his arms but his weight kept her pinned quite efficiently.  He let go of one of her wrists and started caressing her arm up toward her face. This was her chance and she took it. She reached down searching for her wand in her robe pocket as he continued to caress her. He had just cupped her jaw and was lowering his face towards hers when she found her wand. She was still too winded to cast out loud but thankfully Remus had been working with the Gryffindor trio on casting non verbal spells. She was only proficient at a few but that's all she needed.  Finally she got her wand and she cast silent a petrificus totalus. He froze atop her with the oddest look on his face.</p><p>At the time she had been so focused on getting her wand she hadn't really been paying attention to what he was doing. Now, however, she was beginning to think he was going to kiss her! The thought was alarming to say the least.  Winded and shocked, Hermione did her best to dislodge a frozen Malfoy from on top of her. After a fair bit  of struggling she managed to free herself. She stood up and took several deep breaths. As soon as she was able she grabbed the book she had found and started to exit the library back to Gryffindor tower but before she got more than a few steps she turned back and took one last look at Malfoy. </p><p> He was still frozen mid caress and attempted kiss but strangely his eyes were open and staring right back at her. She thought she'd see anger in their depths but he almost looked quizzical.  She was confused and stared back at him. After a few minutes she realized she was still staring and shook herself out of it. "Arsehole," she growled at him and turned and marched off without a backward glance. If she had looked back she'd have seen that quizzical expression turn to raw hunger.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I didn't know if I was going to continue this story but I'm having so much fun with this bunch that I'm going to see where this goes. Not sure the chapter length or how often I'll post but we'll see. :) thanks for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Hermione got back to Gryffindor tower she headed straight for her room not stopping to look at or speak to anyone.  Safely locked in her room, her mind drifted to her encounter with Malfoy.  She recalled every smirk and inflection of his voice as he said the most absurd things to her. She also couldn't help but remember the feel and weight of him on top of her now that her adrenaline was fading.  He was all hard planes and muscle and to her utter dismay she liked how that felt against her softness.  As soon as that thought flitted through her mind she jumped as if someone had shocked her. "No," she said aloud, her shock so strong.  I don't like anything about that bullying git, she thought to herself.  It was just a physical reaction, that's all. She was a teenager after all. Hormones and all that. </p><p>This logical line of thought was enough to calm Hermione and set her mind at ease. Having determined she was only human she went to the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face.  Feeling better altogether she went down to the common room to seek out her friends. When she got there it was in a bit of an uproar. She found her friends laughing in a corner with Ron's sister Ginny. "Hey guys. What's going on? Why is everyone so keyed up?" She asked. "Draco Malfoy was found in the back of the library cursing up a storm. Half frozen from a petrificus totalus," Ron said with glee, "and the craziest part is that he's refusing to tell the professors who cast the spell on him!" "Half the castle has already heard of course," Ginny said, "and everyone is speculating about what actually happened." Hermione should have taken comfort in the fact that he wasn't telling people what happened, but she didn't trust him and just knew he was going to use what happened to bully her some more. the question wasn't if but when. "I'm sure it was just one of his friends or something," she said, "there must be more interesting topics to discuss other than Malfoy and his idiot friends. Our schoolwork for example!" "Only you, Hermione wouldn't want to enjoy Malfoy getting a taste of his own medicine." Harry laughed out. Hermione laughed and rolled her eyes. "Well, I can't help it if I think my education is infinitely more interesting than those Slytherin idiots." She replied primly. Her friends just laughed and carried on with their speculations.  Hermione picked up her book she'd found in the library intending to read but found her mind was too clouded with worry about Malfoy's next move, for she knew there would be one, to relax and enjoy herself. She didn't know how long she sat there worrying but before she knew it, her friends were asking her to head down to the great hall for dinner. </p><p>They had just gotten settled at their table when a large regal looking owl swooped in and landed in front of Hermione and held its leg aloft for her to remove the piece of folded up paper in its talon. She did so and handed it a treat expecting it to take flight again but it just sat there staring at her with unblinking eyes.  "I think you're meant to read that right away Mione," said Ginny with a slight furrow between her brows. "Right." Said Hermione.  She proceeded to unfold the letter and read the single sentence. Well played, Hermione. That was it, no signature, no seal, nothing.  "Who's it from?" Harry asked.  "I haven't a clue, " replied Hermione, " there's no signature and the message makes little sense." Harry read the message and furrowed his brows.  "Have you been playing a game with someone?" He asked. "How absurd Harry. I don't have time for games, this is clearly a prank all its own." she replied with a sharp nod of her head. She cast a quick incendio on the note and watched it turn to ashes. "Let's eat, I'm starving." She said closing off the subject of the odd little note. </p><p>Her friends knew her well enough not to push it when she took on that snooty tone of voice and tucked into their meals. Conversation turned to Remus and how he was adjusting to life back at Grimmauld place with Sirius. After a few minutes there was a commotion by the entrance door.  She looked up and saw Draco Malfoy and his friends entering. There was a small roar of conversation as the entire hall started discussing the Slytherin and the library incident.  Draco seemed not to notice as he made his way to his table. Hermione watched him walk the whole way to his table her nerves having returned.  </p><p>She tried to return to her meal but her eyes kept straying to the Slytherin table of their own volition.  After about the 20th time catching herself she was ready to call the meal a bust and return to her tower. She looked up ready to tell her friends she was done but a pair of silver eyes caught her attention instead.  Draco was staring right at her with a very intense look on his face. She felt trapped in his gaze and couldn't look away.  Suddenly he started smiling a crooked little smile. Her heart rate increased and then he licked his lips and blew her a kiss! Her eyebrows rose almost to her hairline.  She had to get out of here. "Mione? Did Malfoy just blow you a kiss?" Harry asked. "Shit!" Hermione said and bolted from the great hall without a backward glance.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione's legs and arms were pumping as she furiously bolted from the great hall. She was equally furious and turned on by Malfoy's stunt back there. If she was being honest most of her anger was at herself for letting him get to her this way. Between his note and that smirk on his face she knew he was up to something. Some kind of payback for their interactions of late. She was halfway up the main staircase when she heard her name being shouted by multiple voices.  Harry and Ron's were to be expected but the last voice was the last voice she'd ever expected to hear. Hot on the heels of her friends looking more amused than he had a right to be was Theodore Nott shouting her name as he pounded up the stairs. The sight was enough to halt her movements. </p>
<p>They all caught up to her at the same time and all three tried to start talking to her at once.  She didn't even have a chance to determine who she was going to speak to first when silence descended upon the four of them. Nott tried his best to ignore Harry md Ron's angry faces and get her attention but her boys were having none of that.  "Fuck off Nott!" Ron shouted while simultaneously pulling out his wand and pointing it in Nott's face. "Calm down Weasley, I come in peace," Nott said holding his hands up nbn in front of him, as if to say I come in peace. "I just need to speak to Granger for a moment." He said in a calming voice.  "No way are we leaving you alone with Mione," Harry said with deadly calm, "I don't trust you Slytherins anymore than I trust Trelawney to make an accurate prediction. " Nott chuckled and said "suppose I deserve that." Nott said while rubbing the back of his neck, a sheepish expression on his face. "I actually need to speak to you Granger about our prefect duties this weekend in hogsmeade." he said. "Fine. Boys I'll see you later. " she said.  "Are you sure Mione?" Ron said with a wary look on his face. "Yes, I'm sure. I'll catch up with you. " she told him.  Ron nodded and he and Harry headed off toward class.  "What did you need to discuss with me?" She asked him. "I really just wanted to give you a heads up. See, I've finally convinced Luna Lovegood to go out with me this weekend so I asked Draco to take over my prefect duties this weekend, " he explained, "I just thought you might like a heads up." He said. " thank you for telling me but, I dont know why you've bothered this time. You Slytherins are always switching your days around like trading cards." She said laughingly. She and Nott usually got along ok when he wasn't with Malfoy and Zabini. " Two reasons really." He said with a friendly smile. "And they are?" She asked with a laugh after a few seconds of silence.  "One, I've been thinking about that day you punched Draco in the face, and I felt like we probably went too far. I know how close you and your friends were to Professor Lupin and truth be told he was a bang up Professor and was generally well liked. Anyway, I felt like I owe you an apology of sorts and this is my olive branch so to speak. " he said in a rush.  She nodded acceptance then asked, "and number two?" "Right," he said and ducked his head, " so, that day you punched Draco?" He said it like a question and looked at her. She arched her brow and he ducked his head again. "Well, Draco's been different since then." "Different how?" She asked nervously.  "Just different, when it comes to you at least. " she opened her mouth to ask him what the hell he meant by that but he interrupted her and said, "don't ask questions you're not ready to hear the answer to yet." He advised. Her eyes widened and she closed her mouth. "Look, I just thought you should know that he's not likely to bully you anymore. You made quite an impression on him that day you know," he said. "Just keep that in mind and try not to maim him this weekend. " "Right, no maiming," she said,"I suppose you aren't going to answer any follow up questions I have about this change in behavior Malfoys adopted since getting clocked in the jaw?" She asked snarkily. "Nope!" He said jovially popping the P and smiling at her like a lion. "You Slytherins are a rather annoying lot. I hope Luna knows what she's getting herself into." She teased. Nott just laughed and took off down the hall. "Later Granger!" He shouted before he disappeared around the corner. She shook her head at his antics. Suddenly an angry voice behind her said, " Why does Nott think he'll be seeing you later Hermione?" Great, she thought, I'll never get to class at this rate. She turned around and inches from her face was a furious Draco Malfoy.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Shove off Malfoy, " she said as she tried to go around him.  Of course it didn't work.  He leaned down and growled in her ear "we need to talk, " as he grabbed her arm and started propelling her up the stairs. " Malfoy! Let me go this instant!" She very nearly shouted.  He stopped so suddenly she almost tripped over her own two feet.  He turned around and said "I said we need to talk and I can almost guarantee that you would prefer to have this conversation in private, " he said while glaring daggers at her.  Some combination of his words and the intensity he delivered them with struck her mute and she let him pull her along up stairs and down corridors until he stopped dead in the middle of some random corridor.  She was about to ask him where they were going when he let her go and started pacing back and forth with a look of concentration on his face.  It was such an odd sight. She'd meant to run off at vfc the first opportunity but his odd behavior stopped that thought.  What was he doing? </p>
<p>Suddenly a door appeared and he grabbed her arm again and started pulling her through.  Inside was a fireplace with the most comfortable looking sofa in front of it stacked high with throw pillows, and a coffee table complete with a full tea service.  "Where are we Malfoy?" "The room of requirement," he said as he pulled her  towards the sofa.  Hermione goggled at him as he pulled her down next to him on the sofa. She probably looked like a landed fish but, really! The room of requirement? She'd thought it was a myth. No one had ever seen it first hand that she knew of.  At least not in this generation.  According to Remis and Sirius their little band of friends, the Marauders had spent quite a bit of time in this room during their time at Hogwarts. They wouldn't tell them where it was or how to access it so she always just assumed it was a tall tale. "I thought it was a myth," she said out loud before she remembered that she was her with Malfoy.  Instantly her guard was back up. "Hermione, " he said in an exasperated tone, "we can discuss Hogwarts secrets another time. I want to know why Nott thinks he'll be seeing you later!" " what business is it of yours you annoying arsehole! I don't owe you any explanations," she said with conviction. "Hermione, do not test my patience.  If this is going to be your next move in this game of ours, I urge you to reconsider. I am not a patient man by nature and I don't share!" He snarled at her. "Share? What the hell are you talking about you bullying shit? Are under the mistaken impression you have some claim over my time and who I choose to spend it with?" She snarled right back at him matching him glare for glare. Unexpectedly he started to laugh. It started out low but after just a few moments he was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes. </p>
<p>Great, she thought, he's lost it. "Well, this has been fun, but I have classes," she said amidst his laughter, "goodbye Malfoy." She got up and prepared to leave him there to his histrionics, but he suddenly stopped laughing and pulled her back down. "We're not done yet sweetheart." He said. His eyes and voice were so intense. The combination froze Hermione in her seat and set butterflies ro fluttering in her stomach.  He took advantage of her stunned silence.  "I feel like I've gone about this the wrong way.  I'm obviously a few steps ahead of you right now. Please allow me to explain myself. " he said. His switch from angry to imploring and polite gave her pause. Despite her mind telling her to get out her gut told her to hear him out.  She gave a slight nod of her head and stopped trying to pull away from him.  </p>
<p>"Thank you," he said with a crooked grin emerging on his face. That didn't do anything to calm her nerves. If anything she was even more nervous.  "I know you don't have a good opinion of me based on our previous encounters, " he said. "You mean five years of bullying and pranks perpetrated by you and your friends?" She said rather shrilly. "I'll admit in our first couple of years at school I bullied you, but you'll have to concede if you give it some thought, that in recent years my poor behavior has been aimed more at your friends rather than you." He replied. "I don't see how that makes any difference. Your still a bullying prat regardless of if it was aimed at me or not," she replied, "I also don't see the point of why your making these clarifications!" She was starting to get rather annoyed just thinking about all the pranks and mean words she and her friends had to endure over the years. </p>
<p>"Stick with me Hermione,  I'm going somewhere with this." He said calmly. She scoffed and folded her arms across her chest, but didn't interrupt, too curious to hear what he had to say. "The point is that for the last several years I've focused all my teasing on the male duo of your group and less on you. Half the time you were just a prop in the background to me," he held up his hand to stall her words as he saw her start to angrily retort to his statement. She growled at him but held her tongue for now. "That changed a few weeks ago when you punched me, rightly so as I was being a complete arse," he said placatingly. "It was like seeing you for the first time. You were like some beautiful vengeful goddess sent to wake me up." He said with a smile. "I've been watching you and thinking since then and I've come to the conclusion that we should be together. I want you to be mine Hermione." He said.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“You are out of your bloody mind Malfoy!” Hermione screeched at him.  “Be together? You’ve either bullied me or ignored me for the entire five years that we’ve known each other but you get punched in the face once and have some weird eureka moment and I’m supposed to just…. what…. date you?” She yelled at him. “Hermione, I know we have a lot to talk about and work out between us but, believe me when I say that you will be mine,” Malfoy said so intently, had Hermione been made of lesser stuff she might have believed him. Before she could respond to that absurd statement, he started speaking again. “Malfoys always get what they want Hermione, and I want you.” He deadpanned. </p><p>“Let me go Malfoy.” Was Hermione’s only response. “No, we have much to talk about before we leave this room.” He responded. “Malfoy, if you don’t let me go this instant, I will hex you so hard you’ll be feeling it until graduation.” She growled at him. He started to speak again but, Hermione was in no mood for his shenanigans. She silently cast a Langlock jinx followed by a Levicorpus. As Draco hung suspended from the ceiling glaring daggers at her, unable to speak, Hermione said to him, “I don’t know what you are trying to do but it isn’t going to work. I will not allow you to bully me or prank me or use me. So, just leave me alone Draco Malfoy!” She gave him one final glare and quickly exited the room. She didn’t see his smirk as she left him hanging, literally. </p><p>As she left the room of requirement and Malfoy behind, Hermione made the decision to head back to her dorm room rather than try and catch up to her classes. It wasn’t in her nature to skip classes or ignore her work but, she was so worked up by what had happened that she needed to be alone to think and calm down. She knew she needed to hurry before her jinx wore off and Malfoy came looking for her. Whatever prank he was playing he was truly dedicated to it and she didn’t want to deal with him right now. What if he’s not playing? She thought. Her steps faltered. Of course he was playing, right? There is no way Malfoy seriously wanted to date her was there? She just didn’t know. Her experiences with him over the years were enough to prove to her that he was playing a game, but to what end? What was the point? Was it a bet? If that prat is betting on me, I swear I’ll cast a Reducto at his dick! She really needed to talk to someone about this, but who? She certainly couldn’t talk to the boys about this. Their history with Malfoy would definitely would guarantee they couldn’t be impartial. She couldn’t talk to Ginny either since she was Ron’s sister and Harry’s girlfriend. Her loyalty to the boys would make her impartial as well. </p><p>Hermione thought about it all the way back to Gryffindor tower. As she walked through the portrait of the fat lady, she almost ran into Lavender Brown. “Hermione! Don’t you have classes right now?” she asked with a startled look on her face. Hermione really couldn’t blame her; she’d never missed a class before. “I wasn’t feeling well, and I decided to come back for a nap. I have a double potions class this afternoon I need to be alert for and I though it best that I be rested beforehand.” She told her. “Oh, well feel better then. I’ll see you later.” She said as she went off down the hall. Hermione thought about talking to Lavender about her Malfoy problem but, knew that the flighty girl had a healthy crush on Ron, not that he’d noticed as he had his eyes sights currently set on Padma Patil of Ravenclaw. They’d met in a Gryffindor / Ravenclaw study group their friend Luna had put together. “Luna!” she shouted. The few people in the common room turned to look at her like she’d lost her mind. She muttered an apology and quickly climbed the stairs to her dorm room. Luna would be perfect to talk to about this! She was dating Nott after all so; she must have some insight into how the minds of these Slytherins worked. With a plan in place she allowed her mind to calm and her body to relax. She decided to take that nap after all. She’d catch up with Luna after dinner this evening and pick her brain about the nonsense going on with a certain blond Slytherin.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who has read my story, clicked the kudos button, or commented. You are all the best and you are motivating the heck out of me!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione never made it to find Luna after dinner that night. She’d ended up staying in her rooms until her Potions class as she’d told Lavender. When she got there Ron and Harry practically pounced on her. “Hermione!” Harry all but shouted as she approached the classroom. “We’ve been worried sick!” he scolded her. “Yeah, we thought Nott had done something too you!” Ron chimed in. “Why on earth would you think Nott had done something to me?” She questioned. “Well, he did come to lunch sporting a shiner, so….” Harry trailed off. “WHAT??” Hermione shouted. Harry and Ron both looked shocked by her outburst. Ron recovered first. “You mean you didn’t hit him?” he asked. “Of course not!” she huffed. ‘<em>Really! I’ve only every hit one person and it was after five years of dealing with him. Does everyone think I’ve gone rouge and become a beater all of a sudden?’ </em>she thought. “Nott only wanted to give me a heads up that he’s traded his prefect duties for Hogsmeade weekend with someone else. We really only talked for a few minutes and when he left me it was free of black eyes.” She said. “Well you have to admit it was weird timing; plus, you never came to class,” Harry said, “What else were we supposed to think?” Hermione laughed. “I suppose you have a point Harry.” She said. “Well if you weren’t off punching Nott, where were you? Why didn’t you show up for class?” Ron asked. “I was going to come to class but, after talking to Nott I started to feel out of sorts and decided to go back to my dorm to rest before potions,” she said. “Speaking of, we should really head into class before we upset Professor Snape.” She admonished. That lit a fire under her boys and they practically pulled her into the classroom. Professor Snape had a bit of a reputation around Hogwarts. He was really a fantastic Professor that had a wealth of knowledge about a very serious and potentially harmful subject. However, for all the knowledge he had he lacked just as much patience. No one wanted to get on Professor Snape’s bad side. His detentions were notoriously disgusting. Potions may be a fascinating subject but, the ingredients they dealt in were rather noxious at times and having to clean cauldrons of these sometimes ingredients was enough to keep everyone in line during class.</p><p> </p><p>The threat of annoying Professor Snape kept Harry and Ron from bothering her with any more questions about her disappearance from class earlier. They had only been seated for just a few moments when Malfoy came storming in. He locked eyes with her, his nostrils flaring as he looked at her with intensity. She knew he was an intense person by nature. I mean she only had to watch him on the Quidditch pitch to know he was an intense person, but having that intensity leveled at her was really too much. He stood there for what seemed like forever, staring at her with that indecipherable look on his face, when suddenly a voice rang out from the front of the classroom. “Mr. Malfoy. Loathe as I am to interrupt your staring match with Ms. Granger, I’d appreciate it if you save this behavior for after class!” Professor Snape said in his most acerbic voice. Draco and Hermione had the grace to blush, and Draco swiftly found a seat between Nott and Lavender. Hermione put her head down and immediately began taking detailed notes about the lecture Professor Snape was beginning on their lesson. They would be working over the next several lessons on making Amorentia. No matter how hard she hoped the boys wouldn’t make anything of what Professor Snape said, she wasn’t shocked when Harry slid a note in front of her. She tried to ignore it but Harry kept nudging her arm with his elbow. She let it go on for a few minutes before she decided she couldn’t take it anymore.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Hermione, </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>Care to explain why Malfoy was staring at you like that?</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>You might also want to tell us why you were staring back at him. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>-Harry</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>P.S. We just want to help. You’ve been acting weird lately and we want to make sure you are ok. We can kick his ass if you need us to. </em>
  <em>J</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Hermione smiled at the note. It was so like her boys. She knew she needed to tell them what was going on but, she didn’t want to talk about it until she’d had a chance to have some good old-fashioned girl talk with Luna. She needed to same something though. She couldn’t leave them this way, being worried about her. She quickly scribbled a response.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Harry, </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>I have an idea why he was staring at me but, nothing definitive. Still in the research phases. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>I’m ok though and I will sit you both down and give you a run down soon. For now, you had better start paying attention to Professor Snape. I don’t know about you, but I don’t fancy scrubbing cauldrons. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>-Hermione</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>She slid the note over to Harry while Professor Snape had his back turned. She watched him read it under the table out of the corner of her eye. She saw him give a slight nod and turned back to her notes. The rest of class was rather uneventful and a bit boring. It was the perfect situation to cause her mind to wander. Immediately, she began wondering about how Nott got that black eye. She had some very strong suspicions it was done by a blond lunatic who called himself his friend. The question however, was why would he do it? Why punch your friend over a prank? That gave too much credence to the argument in her head that Malfoy wasn’t pranking her after all. That thought was highly uncomfortable though. She shook the thoughts from her head as best she could and tried to focus on Professor Snape’s lecture.  </p><p> </p><p>After class was over, Hermione, Harry, and Ron headed down to the great hall for dinner. They had just seated themselves and Ron was busy piling a large amount of mashed potatoes on his plate while Harry and Ginny occupied themselves with some couple time. Hermione opened up her book she’d been attempting to read for days now and began to read while she ate her beef stew. She quickly became engrossed in her reading and didn’t hear the commotion going on around her. She felt someone sit down to her left and shifted her reading arm out of the way automatically. “What are you reading sweetheart?” She heard from her left. The endearment was so out of the realm of normal for that she stopped reading and looked up and to her left. Her spoon slipped out of her fingers and splashed down in her bowl sending soup flying everywhere. Malfoy was sitting next to her at the Gryffindor table! “Oh no!” she gasped as she started dabbing at the pages of her book now sprinkled in soup. She heard Malfoy chuckle next to her. She turned and gave him her most furious look as she continued to try and clean her book. He reached out gently pried the book out of her hands. He then cast a spell that siphoned the soup right off of the pages leaving them like new. “Do I fluster you so much dear, that you forgot you were at Witch?” he asked with a smirk lodged firmly on his face. She could do nothing more than stare at him, her mouth opening and closing like a fish on land, her eyes wide as saucers. “What are you doing here?” she finally managed to squeak out. “Yeah, what exactly are you doing at our table Malfoy?” Harry asked angrily. Both Ron and Harry had their wands in their hands but, hadn’t pointed them at him … yet. She could feel the tension rising at the table. All of the Gryffindors had experience with Malfoy’s antics and none of them seemed pleased to see him there. She was trying to think of something to do to dispel the volatile situation they were in, but Malfoy had other ideas.</p><p> </p><p>“I came to see Hermione,” he replied as he slid his arm around the small of her back to rest his hand on her hip. The seemingly innocent touch sent electricity racing up and down her spine and her face flamed for all to see. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to lean into his touch or punch him again. While she sat there gaping, Ron and Harry jumped into action. They were waving their wands and screaming at Malfoy. He pulled her into his chest in a protective manner as he pulled out his own wand. She was in an absolute state of shock and couldn’t make herself <em>do</em> anything! She saw Nott and Zabini storming across the great hall presumably to defend their friend. It was chaos. Amidst all the yelling and wand waving she heard a loud voice boom out over them. “That is enough! Wands down, everyone!” she heard Professor Snape bellow. Everyone stopped talking at once and whipped around to stare at their Professor. “I am ashamed of all of you!” Acting like first years all over again. I don’t care what is going on but, all of you will report directly to my potions lab to await punishment!” he said with an eerie calmness. Groans could be heard amongst those involved. Suddenly all of their wands flew out of their hands and into Professor Snape’s waiting arms. “You won’t be needing these.” He said as he glared at them all. “Go now!” he said. Draco started to stand up lifting her with him. “Let’s go before he gets any angrier, hmm?” he said as he started pulling her away from her friends and towards the dungeons. This is going to be a long night, she thought.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
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    <p>Hermione was mortified. Not only had Malfoy embarrassed her in the great hall in front of her friends, he’d gotten her in trouble with a teacher! “What were you thinking pulling a stunt like that Malfoy?” She snapped at him in a whisper as they walked out of the great hall heading towards the dungeons. “I was making a statement, since you seem to be fond of lying to yourself about the seriousness of my intentions.” He replied smoothly. “You have got to be kidding me. The seriousness of your intentions? It seemed more like you were trying to stir up trouble with my friends using me as a convenient prop!” she responded heatedly. “You are so stubborn,” her told her exasperatedly. “What do I have to do to convince you of the sincerity of my feelings?” he asked. That was not the response she was expecting and it stalled the heated response on her lips. Before she could think of a way to respond at all, Harry and Ron caught up to them. Ron tried to pull her out of Malfoy’s arms but, that was clearly the wrong thing to do. “Weasley, I suggest you remove your hand from my witch. Trust me when I say that wand or no wand, I will hex you.” He snarled at Ron. Whatever Ron saw in Malfoy’s eyes seemed to convince him it was a good idea to let her go. This was too much for Hermione though. “How dare you threaten my friends, you egotistical arsehole!” She said vehemently as she tore her arm from his grasp. “Hermione,” he said in a low voice. He sounded almost wounded. She almost felt bad for him, but she wasn’t going to let someone manhandle her no matter how pathetic they sounded.</p><p> </p><p>She took Ron and Harry by their hands and pulled them ahead of the group heading towards Professor Snape’s classroom. They took a seat near the front of the room. Hermione thought it was a good deterrent to keep Malfoy away from her if she was closer to the Professor. Of course, that didn’t exactly work out in her favor. Malfoy took a seat at the table right next to theirs. She was going to get up and move no matter how petty it made her seem but, Professor Snape chose that moment to arrive. “All of you have decided to behave like ruffians and hooligans tonight. Although, I would expect this of your first-year counterparts, I do not expect it from my fifth-year students! You are supposed to set an example to the younger students.” He thundered. Harry started to try and defend his actions. No doubt he was going to lay the blame at Malfoy’s feet. As much as she understood his need to defend himself, she knew Professor Snape wouldn’t take kindly to Harry trying to throw his god-son under the bus. So, she did the only thing she could think of to shut him up. She stomped on his toe and gave him a look that told him to shut it. Harry let out a squeak as he tried not to scream in pain. “Do you have something to say Potter?” Snape asked and arched his brow at him. “No, Professor,” Harry squeaked out. “Indeed,” Snape replied.</p><p> </p><p>“Draco, as you seemed to be a central figure in this situation, please tell me what happened to make the lot of you act like nothing more than children.” He snarked. Malfoy stood and put his hands behind his back like a soldier reporting to his commander. “Sir, I went over to the Gryffindor table to speak to Ms. Granger and her friends proceeded to attack me. I defended myself as best I could. Nott and Zabini came to my defense and then you arrived sir.” Malfoy said. The worst part was that he wasn’t exactly lying. He was just leaving out all of the nuances that told the real story. “I’m sure you are leaving out some details; nevertheless, what you say is how it appeared from the staff table.” Snape said with a nod. “However, dueling outside of the classroom is expressly forbidden at Hogwarts.” Snape said. “Normally, I would recommend expulsion.” He paused after saying this allowing the severity of the situation to sink in. “Seeing as I don’t want to expel half the 5<sup>th</sup> year class, you will all be assigned detention every Friday and Saturday night for a month!” he told the room. You could feel the tension in the room as everyone tried to stifle their groans over this news. “I will be pairing the lot of you up. You and your assigned buddy will serve detention together. You will rotate every week so that you can all learn to get along with each other in difficult situations. Something you clearly need to learn.” He told them. Hermione was not looking forward to these detentions feeling nothing good would actually come of them. “Potter, you’ll be paired with Malfoy. Zabini with Weasley and Nott with Granger.” He said. “You will meet me here in the potions classroom tomorrow after dinner is over for your first detention.” Snape said and then dismissed them.</p><p> </p><p>Hermione left with Harry and Ron walking silently beside her. She knew that when they got back to Gryffindor tower, they were going to grill her about Malfoy. She wasn’t exactly looking forward to it. “Potter!” they heard Malfoy call after them. Even though he had only called Harry, all three friends stopped and turned around to see what Malfoy wanted. “What do you want Malfoy?” Harry asked. “I would have preferred having this conversation alone, but seeing as you three are bound at the hip, this will have to do,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I wanted to apologize to you specifically for how I’ve behaved in regard to the Professor Lupin situation.” He said before Harry could respond. “I won’t say that I haven’t enjoyed riling the three of you up over the years. You three never disappoint in your reactions and I’ve found them humorous over the years,” he said. “However, when Hermione punched me it made me realize that I was severely out of line. Professor Lupin was a good teacher regardless of his creature status.” He said sincerely.</p><p> </p><p>Harry and Ron both looked as if their jaw hinges had been removed. It was almost comical. “Hermione, I’d like to apologize to you as well,” he said. “As Nott reminded me earlier, I’ve had time to come to terms with my feelings over the last few weeks. You however have had no time at all to think about the things I’ve said to you.” He said. “I want to apologize for pushing you too hard too fast. I won’t apologize for my feelings or for my hopes for us, but I will apologize for being an arse.” He said.  He then nodded at all three of them and walked back toward the dungeons. Hermione watched him go with is head hung low and something in her broke a little. It felt like her heart did a summersault. It was all she could do not to sigh out loud. She turned around and her and now it was her stomach doing a summersault. Her boys were staring at her like she had three heads instead of one. “Hermione? What is going on around here?” Harry demanded crossing his arms over his chest. Hermione knew this talk was inevitable but, she wasn’t really ready to have it yet. Part of her wanted to run after Malfoy because surely that talk would be easier.</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The friends didn’t speak a word until they’d arrived back at Gryffindor tower and had settled down into some comfortable seats near the fire. The friends cast some privacy charms Remus and Sirius had taught them from back in their heyday. There were too many inquisitive people milling about and Malfoy’s display in the great hall was too much for everyone to ignore. “Alright Hermione, I think it’s time you caught us up. What is going on with you and Malfoy?” Harry asked straight away. She gave them a quick run down of events. She kept her stomach fluttering and heart flipping feelings to herself. She needed to hear what they had to say before she shared those feelings with them. “Wow.” Ron said and sat back looking up toward the ceiling. Harry just stared into the fire with a pensive look on his face. “Wow? That’s all you have to say?” Hermione asked incredulously. At this Ron turned his eyes on her and said, “I’m sorry Mione, but that’s a lot to take in. I’m trying to process the fact that Malfoy not only has a conscience but a heart as well! It’s rather shocking news.” He snarked back. Harry burst out laughing at Ron’s words. Ron looked at Harry and he back and then they were both laughing to the point of tears. Hermione wasn’t sure if she should be offended or concerned. She’d been struggling for weeks with the attentions of one Draco Malfoy. Worried that he was somehow trying to prank her or use her to get to Harry and Ron, and these two buffoons were laughing hysterically over the whole thing.</p><p> </p><p>It was too much! “<strong>Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley! I am not amused!” </strong>she shouted at them. She rarely yelled at them unless it was about their schoolwork so they were quite stunned by her sudden outburst. “I have been stressed for weeks worrying about his intentions and thinking that he was somehow trying to use me to come after the two of you.” She screeched at them with her arms flailing about. “Mione,” Ron said, recovering from his shock first. “We aren’t laughing at you. It’s just a little shocking that Malfoy is pining after you all because you punched him in the face. I know you’ve been stressed out lately but, even you have to see the humor in that.” He said. “Hermione you have to know we would never take your feelings lightly.” Harry chimed in. Their words seemed to have a calming effect on her and she responded, “I do know that Harry. I guess it is a little funny that violence is what Malfoy’s heart responds to.” Harry and Ron smiled at her. “So, how do you feel about him being in love with you?” Ron asked her. “LOVE?” she shrieked. Ron and Harry cringed as her voice reached a decibel almost too high for human ears. “Who said anything about love?” Hermione asked Ron. Cautiously, Ron responded, “well, if he’s apologizing to Harry and I, he’s got to have some serious feelings for you and what is more serious than love?” Hermione stared at Ron with her mouth agape. She was too startled by his insight to form words. “I think Ron has a point Hermione,” Harry chimed in. “Not that I think he’s in love per say, but you have to admit that Malfoy has to be pretty serious to turn over such a new leaf with us especially.” Harry said. With Harry taking the “L” word off the table of discussion, Hermione was better able to think. “I don’t know how I feel to be honest. I’ve been telling myself for weeks that he was plotting against me, not growing feelings for me.” She responded. Harry gave a nod of his head as if to say that made sense. “Well, you might want to think about your own feelings in all of this.” Ron told her. “My feelings?” she squeaked. “Hermione. We’ve been friends for five years. You think we can’t tell that you aren’t entirely opposed to the idea of dating Malfoy?” Ron said, raising his eyebrow at her in challenge. “I might have felt something a time or two during our interactions over the last few weeks.” She admitted. Harry and Ron both gave her knowing looks. She huffed in exasperation and said, “neither or you seem to be opposed to me having potential feelings for him. Why is that?” “If you’d asked me that even a day ago, I probably would have told you I had a big problem with it honestly,” Ron said, “but after that apology tonight I figure if he’s willing to be the bigger man and apologize for your sake, then he can’t be as big of a jerk as he tries to be.” Harry nodded. “He is still jerk though,” Harry said with a laugh, “but he’s your jerk now.” Ron started laughing at that and they were off again laughing hysterically at the situation. Hermione had a lot to think about now. “I’ll leave you two to your laugh-a-thon,” she said, looking her nose down at them. “I’m off to bed, to … think.” She said. For some reason that set them off even more. She just shook her head at them and started heading off to her dorm.</p><p> </p><p>Once in her dorm she took a long hot bath, combed and plaited her long curly hair, and went about washing her face and brushing her teeth. She climbed into bed and snuggled down into the soft comforter and plump pillow. During this whole time, she’d given thought to a great many things. She thought about all of the interactions she’d had with Malfoy the last few weeks. She thought about the revelation that he might have strong feelings for her. She thought about how well her boys took the news and she thought her feelings throughout it all, as her boys bid her to do. She knew she was attracted to him. Physically speaking he was fit and the smirk he was always leveling at her was enough to set her heart to racing and the butterflies to erupt in her belly. Was that enough to go off of though? Did they have anything in common other than mutual attraction? She supposed the only way to find out was to spend some time talking to him. With that decision made, Hermione was suddenly very tired. ‘I’ll just have to seek Draco</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next day was a typical Friday at Hogwarts. Nothing out of the ordinary happened. Hermione knew she wanted to speak to Draco, but had decided to wait until their prefect duties tomorrow to do so. They would be almost guaranteed some time to talk since it was their job to patrol the town and assist students when necessary.</p><p> </p><p>At dinner that evening, she and the boys were discussing their upcoming detentions. Harry was almost excited to be serving detention with Draco now that he knew about his feelings for his friend. Hermione was concerned one of them was going to leave that detention wounded. She would just have to hope they would behave themselves. After they had finished dinner, Hermione told them it was time to start heading down to the dungeons to start their detentions. When they got to the door leading into Professor Snape’s room, they saw Draco and Nott talking heatedly off to the side while Zabini stared off into space twirling his wand looking as if he didn’t have a care in the world. At their approach Draco stopped talking to Nott and leveled his gaze at her. It was just as intense as always. “Hermione,” he said and then followed it up with, “Potter, Weasley,” As he said their names, he nodded in their direction in some semblance of a friendly greeting. “Malfoy,” they both said at the same time. He then turned his gaze back to her. She felt like she was burning up under his stare. Her initial reaction was to try to convince herself that he was up to something but, after her talk with the boys last night she tried to block out that voice in her head. She couldn’t very well determine if she liked the boy or not if she wasn’t even able to handle him looking at her. “Draco,” she said with a nod of her head. He inhaled sharply through his nose and if possible, his gaze became even more intense. For a moment she didn’t know what had come over him, but then she realized she’d slipped and called him Draco instead of Malfoy. As soon as she realized her mistake her eyes widened and she ended up looking like a deer caught in the headlights of a muggle vehicle. He stalked over to her and leaned down to whisper in her ear, “if you want me to take things slow for you, you cannot look at me that way and say my given name dearest.” She shivered slightly as his breath caressed her ear. “Not if you want me to behave anyway.” He whispered. The breath at her ear combined with that wicked implication caused her entire body to practically vibrate. Of course, he noticed her reaction, and chuckled throatily near her ear. “Maybe you don’t want me to behave as much as you think you do? Hmm?” he said and then pulled away from her and walked back over to Nott.</p><p> </p><p>Her face was flaming red like a tomato and her breathing was shallow and swift. She knew one thing for certain; Draco Malfoy was trouble with a capital “T.” As she stood there trying to compose herself, Professor Snape appeared before them. “Let us begin this detention.” He said, and led them into the dungeons. “Potter and Malfoy, you will be reorganizing the ingredients in my store room. Zabini and Weasley, you will be scrubbing the underside of all the desks. Nott and Granger, you will be scrubbing the cauldrons left over from this afternoon’s first year class.” He said. All of them quickly started up their tasks as Professor Snape went into his adjoining study, presumably to grade papers. “Let’s get to this shall we Nott?” Hermione asked her detention partner. Nott just nodded his head and started off towards the dirty cauldrons stacked near the sink. They quickly developed a rhythm and were working quite efficiently. However, every time Hermione tried to talk to Nott, he would decidedly ignore her. It was maddening and she didn’t understand it. She and Nott weren’t friendly by any means but, they’d always gotten on alright when they did have to interact together. She just couldn’t make sense of it.</p><p> </p><p>After an hour of silently scrubbing dirty cauldrons Hermione had had enough. “Nott you are going to speak to me, so help me Merlin, or I’ll bat bogey hex you right before your date with Luna tomorrow!” She said in an aggravated voice. He startled at her threat and quickly looked over his shoulder towards the storeroom where Harry and Draco were working. He then looked back at her and said, “Hermione, please! I cannot talk to you. Not unless you want me to show up for my date with Luna tomorrow sporting another black eye?” He hissed at her. “I fail to see what one has to do with the other,” she replied in an annoyed tone. “You fail to see … are you blind witch?” he hissed at her again. “Don’t be rude. Just tell me what is going on.” She responded primly. “You mean to tell me you haven’t put two and two together with that big brain of yours?” He asked. She just let out a sound of aggravation and gave him a look that said she was not amused. “Draco has it bad for you Hermione,” he said. “I’m aware that he has developed some feelings in the last few weeks, but I fail to understand why I can’t talk to you and why if I do, you’ll end up with a shiner.” She said. “Again, with your ‘fail to see’ logic,” he said as he rolled his eyes at her. “He’s the jealous sort Hermione. He saw us talking in the hall the other day and assumed I was interested in you and was making my intentions known. He didn’t take kindly to the notion and I ended up with a black eye and a healthy respect for Draco’s feelings in regard to you.” He said lowly. She tried to ask him more questions about Draco’s feelings, but he must have felt he’d pushed his luck enough for one night. No matter how hard she tried she couldn’t get him to speak to her again for the rest of the night.</p><p> </p><p>Two hours later and Professor Snape came out of his office and dismissed them for the night. Hermione washed and dried her hands and started to headed out of the potion’s classroom to meet the boys in the hall and walk back to Gryffindor tower. As she exited the room her boys were nowhere to be found. “I asked them to give me a few minutes to speak to you in private.” She heard Draco say directly behind her. She spun around and nearly bumped into him he was so close. He reached up and tucked a curl behind her ear and then trailed his fingers down her arm and grabbed ahold of her hand. “May I walk you back to your tower princess?” he asked. Her heart was nearly beating out of her chest and all she could do was nod her head yes.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Draco lead Hermione out of the dungeons. They were halfway back to Gryffindor tower and he still hadn’t said anything to her. Hermione was getting frustrated. He’d told her he wanted to speak with her but, they’d been walking for several minutes and all he seemed interested in doing was caressing her hand with his thumb. It felt nice if she was being honest with herself but, she wanted to her what he had to say to her. She decided to take this conversation into her own hands. “Draco?” “Yes?” he responded. “Why did you punch Nott? I thought he was your friend?” she asked. She’d been wondering about it all night and Nott wasn’t being very forthcoming so, she had decided to go to the source. Draco stopped and turned to face her. “Who said <em>I</em> punched him?” Draco asked, his nostrils flaring slightly. “I asked you first,” she threw back at him. “He and I had a disagreement and I punched him.” He said with a wave of his hand. “Now, you answer my question. Who told you I punched him?” He asked in an eerily calm voice. Hermione’s instincts kicked in and she decided that she wouldn’t tell Draco that it was Nott that had told her. “No one told me <em>specifically</em>. I heard it through the rumor mill.” She said. He looked at her with those intense eyes again. It was like he was trying to read her mind or something. “You’re not a very good liar sweetheart.” He informed her. Hermione’s jaw dropped at his audacity! “I saw you trying to talk to him tonight.” He told her. “Well, of course I tried to talk to him! We were stuck scrubbing cauldrons together for three hours!” She waspishly replied. “He wouldn’t speak to me though, no thanks to you!” She said. “Good.” He deadpanned.</p>
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<p>That was it, she’d had it. Hermione pulled out her wand intending to hex him, but he snatched her wand out her hand faster than she could cast. She marveled at how quickly he’d reacted, but she shouldn’t have been surprised. He wasn’t Slytherin’s seeker for no reason. “No more hexes Hermione.” He said as he stowed her wand in his robe pocket. “Give me back my wand Malfoy!” she demanded. His eyes lit up and that damnable crooked grin took over his face. “Back to Malfoy, are we? Tsk, tsk, tsk …” He said with a smirk as he began to walk toward her. She didn’t trust that look in his eyes. So, for every step he took forward she took another step back. “You are such a feisty, stubborn witch,” he said, taking another step toward her. She took another step back. Butterflies erupted in her stomach at the look in his eye. “What am I to do with you, hmm?” he asked. He took another step toward her. “I don’t know.” She responded breathily, taking another step back and knocking into something solid. She’d run out of moves. He put one hand on either side of her head, caging her in. “Lucky for us, I’ve got all sorts of ideas,” he said. He then lowered his head and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. All rational thought left her head. His lips were soft and warm and felt amazing against hers. She expected him to try and deepen the kiss but, he seemed content to nuzzle at her mouth, placing small soft kisses from one corner of her mouth to the other. It was a slow seduction that left her breathless. She very much wanted more and was just about to deepen the kiss for them, when he pulled back. “What’s my name?” he asked her. His question threw her off kilter and her kiss addled brain just blurted out, “Draco.” He just smiled and said, “good girl.”</p>
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<p>That seemed to shake the fog from her brain. She narrowed her eyes at him and sneered, “that was low even for you … <em>Draco.</em>” He just smirked. “I’m a Slytherin sweetheart, cunning is my middle name.” He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on the tip of her nose. “Let’s get you back to your tower before your friends come searching for you. He started to pull her away from the wall. Hermione was annoyed with herself. How could she have walked right into that one? She’d have to stay on her toes to keep up with him. “Why don’t you want Nott talking to me?” She asked. It was really bothering her that he wouldn’t answer any questions about Nott. Draco growled, literally growled. The noise was so unexpected that Hermione didn’t see Draco’s next move coming. He turned back toward and pinned her up against the wall. His hands dove into her hair and he practically assaulted her mouth with his. He forced his tongue into her mouth claiming every part of it. Hermione was overwhelmed by sensations. His taste and smell were overwhelming. He smelled of fresh air, sandalwood, and citrus. It was intoxicating. She shouldn’t be letting him take such liberties with her but, for the life of her she couldn’t muster the desire to end this kiss. It was overwhelming and all consuming. After what seemed like hours but, was only mere minutes, Draco pulled away first but, he didn’t let her go. He began peppering her face and neck with soft kisses. Hemione held onto his robes trying to catch her breath. “Draco?” she said tentatively. He stopped kissing her and pulled back to look her in the eyes. “This wasn’t how I planned this evening.” He told her. “I’d planned to be a proper gentleman and ask you to go out with me before dropping you off at your tower.” Hermione smiled at the image of Draco as a proper gentleman. He was too intense to every be considered a gentleman. “You want to go out with me?” She asked. “Yes, Hermione. I want to date you, kiss you, hold you, and take care of you.” He said. “Why?” she asked. This was the question she needed answered the most. He looked at her as if weighing how much he wanted to tell her. “You challenged me. That might seem like a crazy reason to you but, no one challenges me. I’m an only child so, I don’t have any sibling to contend with. My father is the head of the board of governors so most of the students here just follow my orders or bow to my will. No one has ever challenged me before, until you. Not only did you stand up to me but, you called me on what a horrible little shit I was.” He explained. “How could I not fall for you?” he asked. “Oh.” She responded, because really, what does one say to a proclamation like that. “Oh, indeed.” He smirked. “What do you say Hermione? Will you be mine?” he asked. Hermione gulped. “I’d like that, but I want to go slowly and get to know you Draco.” She said. A smile lit up Draco’s face and he said, “I can go slow.” She smiled back at him. He took her hand in his and skimmed his lips over he knuckles. “Let’s go, I’d like to get you back soon before your friends send out a search party.” Draco walked Hermione the rest of the way to Gryffindor tower. As they reached the portrait of the fat lady, Draco turned to her and said, “Goodnight Hermione.” He then gently kissed her on the forehead. “Goodnight, Draco.” She said and smiled at him before turning and entering the common room. Harry and Ron spotted her as soon as she walked through the door and pulled her over near the fire. She gave them a brief update of her conversation with Draco and then bid them goodnight. Between scrubbing cauldrons and her talk with Draco, she was exhausted. Just as she was drifting off to sleep, a troublesome thought flittered into her head. Draco had never answered her question about why he didn’t want her talking to Nott nor had he really explained why he’d punched him. She’d just have to corner him tomorrow during their Hogsmeade rounds and demand an answer.</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning when Hermione woke, her first thoughts were of Draco. She smiled to herself as she remembered how his kisses made her feel, all warm and tingly all over. She was dating Draco Malfoy! The absurdity of it all caused her to chuckle to herself. If anyone had proposed this to her just a few weeks ago she’d have suggested they head off to the infirmary for a check up with Madam Pomfrey. She laughed to herself and started to gather her things together. She was going to head down to the prefect’s bathroom and indulge in a nice long bath before heading down to breakfast.</p><p> </p><p>She tossed on her Gryffindor robe over her pajamas and grabbed her toiletry bag. When she got to the prefect’s bathroom, she whispered the password to the portrait of Gathowin the Centaur who guarded the door. He bowed to her and released the lock on the door. Hermione set her things down and started filling the tub, adding in Gardenia bubbles and vanilla oil to her bath. Once the tub was filled, she disrobed and slid into the water. It was warm and smelled heavenly. She leaned back and just floated in the water for a time, letting her mind wander.</p><p> </p><p>Of course, her mind wandered to thoughts of Draco. She thought about the intensity in his eyes last night when he kissed her. She let herself imagine what it would be like dating him. Would he be intense like this all the time or would he mellow out the more comfortable he got with their relationship? Would she want him to stay intense or would she prefer him to mellow out? One thing she knew for certain, was that she didn’t want him to control her. She was becoming more and more bothered by his interactions with Nott since he caught them speaking together in the hallway.</p><p> </p><p>As she lay there floating in the scented water, she came to the conclusion that if this was going to work between them, they were going to have to come up with some ground rules. As usual, once she’d made a decision, her worries quickly faded and she finished up her ablutions and got out of the tub. She cast a drying charm on her body and a modified one on her hair that helped to tame its natural tendency to frizz. Being a witch was awesome sometimes, she thought as she looked herself over in the mirror. Satisfied her hair was looking its best, she quickly got dressed and headed out of the bathroom.</p><p> </p><p>As she exited, she noticed someone leaning up against the wall, waiting for her to finish up. They turned to look at her and she realized it was Nott. “Good morning,” she said to him. Upon looking up and realizing it was her, his eyes proceeded to grow to the size of saucers. “Hi,” he said as he barreled past her practically shouting the password at Gathowin and disappearing behind the door before she even had a chance to respond. Hermione’s jaw was literally hanging open at the ridiculous scene that had just transpired before her. This just wouldn’t do, she thought. She was definitely having a few words with one blond Slytherin today.</p><p> </p><p>…</p><p> </p><p>After dropping her things off in her room, Hermione waited in the common room for her friends to come down so they could head to breakfast together. While she waited, she couldn’t help but think that Draco had been particularly vicious when talking to Nott about her. There was no way he was this paranoid just because Draco gave him a black eye. What was that blond nuisance up to, she thought?</p><p> </p><p>Soon enough, Ron and Harry made their way downstairs and the three friends made their way down to the great hall. “Did you have a nice talk with Malfoy last night,” Harry asked. Hermione smirked at Harry and said, “it was very nice.” Harry gave her a weird look that was half disgusted and half horrified. “What does that even mean?” He wailed. This was too much for Hermione and she started laughing. “Oh, Harry,” she said, shaking her head, “nothing like that!” “We just decided that we are going to date, but we are taking things slowly so that we can get to know one another better,” she told him. The look of horror slowly receded from Harry’s face at her words. “Well, that reasonable.” Ron piped in. “Has he asked you out on a date yet then?” Harry asked, having recovered from his self-imposed freak out. “Not yet, but I’ll be patrolling with him today in Hogsmeade so, maybe we’ll set something up then.” She responded as they made their way into the great hall.</p><p> </p><p>They sat down to breakfast and Hermione immediately started fixing herself a nice cup of strong tea and a bowl of oatmeal and fruit. She would need the sustenance trying to keep up with the students and one intense Slytherin. She and her friends talked over breakfast about the upcoming quidditch match tomorrow, Hufflepuff vs Ravenclaw. If Ravenclaw won, they’d be facing them the following weekend and Ron was nervous about playing them, fearing if they won it would hurt his chances of getting together with Padma.</p><p> </p><p>Hermione was listening to the boys talk about the upcoming game with half an ear as she sipped on her second cup of tea. She knew this game was important to them, but she’d never been a big enough fan to really get invested in the conversation when talks of strategy came up. Her mind had started to wander again when she was pulled out of her thoughts by what seemed like half the hall gasping together. She had no idea what was going on until she felt someone standing behind her.</p><p> </p><p>“Hermione,” she heard from behind her. She was quickly becoming familiar with this voice and the way it caressed her name. She looked over he shoulder and sure enough there was Draco. He looked good. His hair was tousled a bit like he’s been standing on top of a hill on a windy day, and his eyes were like liquid silver. He literally took her breath away and she let out a soft gasp. He smiled down at her as he extended his hand to her. “Would you care to walk down to the gates with me to start our patrol?” he asked. “Certainly,” she said with a smile, taking his hand and giving him a soft smile. “Potter, Weasley.” He said as he nodded toward each of them. “I’ll see you in Hogsmeade boys,” Hermione said as Draco tucked her arm in his and started leading them toward the doors.</p><p> </p><p>The great hall was so silent you could have heard a pin drop during the whole interaction. It was making Hermione a little anxious, so she tried to pull her arm out of Draco’s grasp. This did not go over with the blond god walking next to her for he pulled them both to a stop in the middle of the great hall and looked down at her, his nostrils flaring and his eyes fired up. “What are you doing Hermione?” he asked, his voice like steel. “Nothing,” she said defensively. She didn’t like that look in his eyes, it never ended well. “Are you embarrassed to hold my hand or are you afraid you’ll run off potential suitors?” he snarled at her. She was shocked by where his mind had gone to and bit embarrassed at being reprimanded in front of the entire school.</p><p> </p><p>In hindsight, she probably could have handled the situation better, but she was so angry at being manhandled and questioned that way. “That must be it Malfoy! I cannot possibly want to be seen holding hands with you because I fancy someone else!” she scoffed at him and tried to pull her arm away from him. His eyes darkened to pewter and he literally growled at her. “Mine,” he said so intensely, it rooted her to the spot. Before she could recover, he was kissing her. Not just any kiss either. It was possessive and passionate and made her toes go numb. She couldn’t think and although she was mad at him, she couldn’t not respond. She just stood there letting him ravish her in front of the entire school, teachers, ghosts, and students. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she should stop this or he’d think he could win every argument like this but, her hormonal body was winning. She was screwed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry for the delay in posting an updated chapter. My life has been very hectic for the last couple of weeks. This years cold and flu season has hit us hard here and I've been scrambling to keep up with my everyday obligations let alone writing. I'm hoping to get back on some kind of regular writing schedule now that things have settled down. If you're still reading this, thanks for sticking with me. :)</p>
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